Sprints, drills, matches… Spartan wrestlers have been working tirelessly to get in tip-top shape this year.
The JV and Varsity wrestling teams are motivated to make this season a good one. They look to rally around a new coach this year, Ben Fiacco, a three time state champion with the experience to lead the team in the right direction,
“Coach Fiacco makes us enjoy practice,” said freshman Varsity wrestler Tristan Lucas. “I come in every day knowing I’m going to learn something new.”
Fiacco is turning up the intensity of this season’s practices and his refreshingly serious attitude is bringing a new drive to the wrestlers.
“At this point in the season, practices are focused on improving our mistakes from the previous competition and fine-tuning our technique.” said Fiacco. “With most of the teaching done during the first month or so of the season, practices are shorter and more intense.  The goal is to get the wrestlers to peak at the right time, which is the post season.”
With post season right around the corner, practices are all drills, drills, drills. In order to develop the endurance for strenuous matches, the focus is on conditioning the wrestlers.
“This year, we drill like crazy, which conditions us and makes body movements a force of habit,” said senior and Varsity captain Cameron Husseini. “We don’t have to think where our bodies should be- we feel it more than we think.”
While the JV teams did quite well at the JV Jamborees, Varsity wrestlers were having a tough time at competitions earlier in the season, especially against aggressive and large teams from Annandale and George C. Marshall High Schools.
“Varsity’s dual record thus far is 4-4,” said Fiacco, “with two of those losses coming down to the final match in the meet. We have had a few injuries that have impacted the Varsity lineup, but there have been a number of JV wrestlers who have stepped up and wrestled in Varsity competitions.”
These lengthy wrestling tournaments are incredibly physically and mentally draining, requiring immense stamina. Competitions are all day, sometimes lasting from 7 am to 10 pm. Though wrestlers have a maximum of 4 matches a day, each one takes every ounce of strength, energy, and concentration that a wrestler has.
“A lot of people say that a six minute match can’t be very hard,” said sophomore Varsity wrestler Anthony Bruno. “but wrestling is your strength against someone else’s strength.”
Besides muscle and endurance, wrestlers have to have good strategy on the mat. Even the strongest competitors can be defeated by someone with clever moves.
“We are trying to wrestle smart, giving up the least amount of points.” said Bruno. “On the mat, I don’t try big risky moves. I’ll do a move that works 90% of the time to get one point. Then I’ll try something harder and that’s worth more points.”
The whole team crowds around the mats to support their teammate as they try to score points. On the sideline, the coach shouts pointers and the team yells out advisable moves, but the wrestler is totally focused on the opponent.
“On the mat it’s like nothing is going on around you.” says Husseini. “It’s only you and the person you are wrestling, and you want to take them down. I can’t hear anything. Coach could be screaming with a megaphone and I wouldn’t hear him. The adrenaline is insane. I get dropped on my head, ankle picked, punched, fish hooked, scratched, poked, and I can’t feel a thing. Until after– then it hurts a lot.”
As the team heads into post-season, Coach Fiacco is making sure each wrestler is well-equipped to excel in matches.
‘I remind the wrestlers to stay focused and take care of the “little things” that will make them successful,” said Fiacco. “A saying that my father/coach always used and that I try to instill in my wrestlers is, ‘If you take care of the little things, the big things take care of themselves.’”
The wrestling teams hope that their weeks of blood, sweat, and tears don’t go unnoticed.
“Regardless of JV or Varsity, I encourage the school to come out to our meets.” said Husseini.
“WS Wrestling is doing big things this year.”